Rao
Rao (ツヅラオ, Tsudzurao) is a character encountered in Ōkami. She was a priestess who was possessed by the Oni Island demon Ninetails. Personality Not much of the real Rao's personality is revealed due to her death before Amaterasu gets a chance to meet her, but Evil Rao's impersonation was so accurate that nobody could tell the difference. Rao appears to be a kind-hearted and generous person who honors Queen Himiko and is very loyal in her position as Regent of Sei'an City. Most of the residents of the city have come to see her as a figure of hope and trust. However, she acts oddly in some instances, which later causes Amaterasu to discover her true identity (for example, she abandons Amaterasu and Issun when they are attacked by the Water Dragon). Oddly, Rao does not seem to notice Issun's attraction to her. This may be because she is not used to the ways of humans. Appearance Rao is very beautiful, and as a result a large number of characters seem to be attracted to her. She has a large chest that is the focus of Issun's attention, causing Issun to nickname her "busty babe". She wears a nun's hood, a necklace of blue beads and a purple dress with a yellow sash. When Ninetails' impersonation has been revealed and she changes to her 'Evil Rao' form, her outfit changes as well. She gains a fox mask and arm guards, and moves her hood back to allow space for her ears. She wields a smaller version of Ninestrike. The sword has a brush on the end of it, but she never uses it. There some obvious differences between the 'Real Rao' and 'Evil Rao' in terms of clothing: Although their outfit is mostly the same, Real Rao wears blue beads and shows both of her eyes, but Evil Rao wears red beads and covers one eye with her hair to conceal the fact that she is missing an eye. Also, if you see Evil Rao's shown eye clearly, it has a beauty mark below it. Story Background The real Rao was killed by Ninetails and her remains were discarded in the hidden passageway behind Ankoku Temple that leads to Himiko's Palace. Ninetails then impersonated her human form to gain access to Queen Himiko. ''Ōkami Her true identity is revealed when Amaterasu and Otohime see a dark apparition attacking 'Rao' in the Dragon Orb, which was retrieved after King Wada's death. Amaterasu and Issun rush to Ankoku Temple, where they follow the real Rao's ghost into a hidden underground passageway that leads to Himiko's Palace. After finding Himiko's attendant unconscious by the elevator, the two hurry to Himiko's room, only to find the queen dead with her crystal ball next to her body, and Rao standing, supposedly frightened, by one of the pillars. Rao tells Amaterasu that "a great beast ten times "her" height attacked Himiko and killed her." However, Amaterasu saw through the priestess's lie, and attacked her. This caused Rao to show her true form, which was actually Ninetails. Rao Artwork.jpg|Artwork of Rao and Ninetail as Evil Rao in the Ōkami Official Complete Works. Quotes *"Melons?"'' *''"I will honor my duty with my life!"'' Trivia *Rao is based on the Japanese legend of "Happyaku Bikuni" or "The Eight-Hundred-Year-Old Priestess" in English. This story is about a young girl who accidentally eats the meat of a mermaid, and when the girl reached adulthood she suddenly stopped aging and became near immortal. However, after marrying many times and outliving all of her families, she became a nun. After embarking on many pilgrimages to other countries, she returned to her home village and hid herself inside a cave to die. *Interestingly, Evil Rao's Japanese name, Tsuzurao, is actually a hint to her true identity. With kanji, it can be written as 九尾 ("nine tails") or 九十九尾 ("ninety-nine tails"). *It is noticeable that the real Rao was originally very strong, because many of the citizens in front of her home said that she had saved them, and that they wanted to thank her for her actions. *In the Ōkami Official Complete Works, it is revealed that the real Rao would be reborn as a flower in front of the secret passage, near a grave which has been built for her remains. This event may occur sometime after Ōkamiden as the flower does not appear in the game. *In Ōkamiden, items belonging to the real Rao (ie: her blue bead necklace) can be found and returned to the new head priest of Ankoku Temple as a sidequest. *Even though Rao is actually the Demon Lord Ninetails in disguise, Amaterasu can still use Bloom to make "Rao" pet her. She also reacts to Power Slash and Cherry Bomb, like ordinary NPCs. It is likely that this was all part of her elaborate act. *The secret passage behind Ankoku Temple is gone in Ōkamiden, covered by a wall. Examining it will cause Chibiterasu's partner to wonder what is behind it. Category:Ōkami Characters Category:Character Images Category:Ōkami Character Images